I’m glad it was in my living room for a couple of months, though, and I was thankful for it when I had nothing else to sit on. I watched movies in it. I fell asleep in it.

*cue Oscar-style montage of me watching classic movies, intercut with shots of me sleeping in a big-ass chair*

Saw Borat tonight and couldn’t stop with the laughing. Hilarious, with great satiric sensitivity. It rode the line beautifully.

After watching episodes of Ali G. on HBO on demand I thought I would cringe through the whole thing, but instead I busted a gut. I loved it the mix of candid and scripted material.

Oh, Borat. So, so funny.

Drunk! Typing accomplished only slowly, with many corrections. Poss the bset night of my home time.

Ooh, time to play truth-or-dare, L.!

Could do! Who but you and I are around?

Only me, and I’m crepey. Best not for the truth or the dare.

Kenan, you know I don’t give a shit. Would tell you anyway.

Ugh, I smell like campfire.

Ok, let’s do this thing.

How do you do an online dare?

DID YOU KNOW THAT THE 90’S WERE THE TIME WHEN MUSIC HIT ITS PINNACLE? After the 90’s I stopped caring, with only occasional acts that spark anything like the passion I had back then. At Lucky Strike (bowling alley on the premises of the River East 21 Cinema) tonight they played almost 100% 90’s and I saw what a glorious period that was. I want it back.

xpost—I have double-dosed on Xanax, so T or D could be fun. I also had a big giant Jim Beam Black, 2 Bud lights and the another JB, which I snuck into the movie in its rocks glass.

Who starts? I already peed in the woods twice tonight, so I’m feeling okay with the majority of dares. Haha XP.

HI JESSE!!!!

Oh god, Hi, Laurel. Penetrate me.

You pick a foreign object and I’ll consider it.

Someone dare me to say that I LURV the Smashing Pumpkins circa Gish-Melon Collie. I’ll take that dare.

I have posted about that bowling alley before, I think. Classic.

Jesse, you lose. I love love LOVE Siamese Dream. Still.

I’ll see that, and raise you “August and Everything After” by Counting Crows.

You pick a foreign object and I’ll consider it.

I’ll take Big Purple Dildo for $1000, Bob.

“August and Everything After” by Counting Crows.

I think we can be friends after all. That’s a really great record.

TS: 90’s or 80’s???

Bra is starting to pinch, removed it in secret girl way without substantially disarranging any clothing. That should count as a dare, I think. So you both owe me a Truth, if I could only think of a question I cared enough about to ask the two greatest exhibitionists of ILX.

xpost 80’s. Easy.

Easier if we can include Depeche Mode’s Violator in the 80’s. Come on, guys. It’s just under the wire.

Where does Violent Femmes album come in? With the tribal art thing on the cover? Included that Fall Out the Window song.

I think 90s, in my case. I went to college ’94-’98 so that’s preferable. All I remember from the ’80s is hair metal and “Electric Blue” by Icehouse.

For instance, the (in)famous Skid Row song, which I only heard on 104.5 Sunny FM and thought for ages was “Yukon Wild” instead of “Youth Gone Wild.” Thank you, Jack London.

xxpost You’re in luck. Or not. That’s the cover of a best-of comp.

HELLO I AM DRUNK WHERE ARE YOU ALL?

XZP: hmm, maybe so. My roommate had it.

God, who could make such a deicision? Around 1998 or so I stopped caring about anything I didn’t already like.

—-this post was just interrupted by my co-worker P@xs0n who was sobbing b/c her grandfather is dying and she has to fly to Seattle and I will be house and dog (!!) sitting for her. Oy.

Re: Femmes. Nothing is as good as the first album. Not even the other songs of theirs that are AWESOME. 1983.

hmm, maybe so

I promise you, I promise you.

I’m sorry but I’m just thinking of the right words to say.

god i feel like a fucking heel because she had wanted to hang out todya and i avoided her because she gets really weird after a few drinks —showing her mom’s ashes, her journals, telling you that you are the most beautiful person she’s ever known, inside and out, etc.

Less music-related nostalgia, more truth or dare.

We should tak the Truth or Dare to IM. Can we open a gchat group or something? Do I have to download AIM for this purpose? Because I’ll do it.

The upside: I get to stay in her nice condo on State and Madison, 3 blocks from work, in-unit w/d, with a FUCKING DOGGY WOGGY!

JAYMC IS LURKING

I absolutely love Siamese Dream. That was a turning point in my musical life. The pinnacle, probabaly.

is there such a thing as g groups?

xpost True nuff. That’s a crazy good record.

Did you know that Jason Bateman is the single most desireable man in the world?

OH! So I met a guy last night and we hung out at his place last night and I spent the night. Now he’s called me twice (TWICE!) today. That’s really off-putting.

hey, who has aim?

I mean, how you gonna call somebody to hang out on Xmas day, the same day you just parted ways when it was clearly a casual thing, and then how you gonna call TWICE?

xpost—No AIM here.

I’ve only got yahoo and whatever works with my gmail account. I’m house-sitting in a condo in roger’s park and I’m game.

Am I crazy, or is there some way now to make all of the different messaging systems compatible?

I’m on AIM right now. There are Google Groups like there are Yahoo Groups: for listservs.

Cherub Rock, Zero, and Tonight, Tonight.

Hold on, downloading AIM and logging in....

Trying the same...

HEY what are yr names? I’ll invite you to “buddy chat”.

Jesse/EZ: download AIM, if you please? You can transfer buddy lists from several other services. Just post your chosen nicknames here and I’ll invite you to chatz.

I use YIM and GIM.

JESSE DOWNLOAD AIM, I NEED YOU HERE.

There is some chat client that combines them all, I’ll have to ask 3mm4 what she uses.

Back at work, back at work.

went to that strip of Milwaukee between Ashland and Damen that is just lousy with crappy furniture stores.

i love that strip, especially the part between paulina and about wood or so.

kev: xmas mix is a real hit with the fam!

awesome. the only thing i’d do differently is maybe leave off the andre williams song as it’s somewhat raunchy but i put it towards the end of the mix in hopes that if it were played at a party everyone would have enough drinks in them by that point to appreciate it.

Thanks to John/Eric/Amanda/Jesse/etc. for coming out this weekend btw, that was nice. I had a great time in Chicago even if I was so tired I could hardly speak by the end of the second night.

Final restaurant count: Lawrence’s twice, Ashkenaz Deli once, Fiesta Mexicana once, Hot Doug’s zero. As John said I think it has become my white wale. :(

Bra is starting to pinch, removed it in secret girl way without substantially disarranging any clothing.

is this the thing where you unhook it then slide it off a shoulder then shoot it out the other sleeve? ’cause that is still a wonder to me every time i see it. i’m still not quite sure how that works but i don’t spend much time pondering it either. i need some mysteries, y’know?

Chat thing is Meebo I think.

I had Xmas eve dinner at Andie’s—good food.

The bra trick is dazzling because is is concealed and quick.

i’m so congested that my left eye is watering.

if i were a horse they’d put me down.

they shoot horse, don’t they?

why am i here? i don’t mean that in an existential way, i mean why the fuck am i at work? i’m not doing anything but wishing i was home in bed nursing a pint of nyquil. on the bright side only four and a half more hours to go.

I’ve still got this headache thing that only hurts when I stand up or lie down, like it’s an equilibrium thing. I’m pretty sure it’s either minor cold/flu symptoms (although otherwise I’m not that stuffed up) or a brain tumor.

So is everyone else on vacation still?

My stomach is still in holiday mode, I feel like I have to end every meal with 7+ cookies.

no, i’m at work and now actually doing work while wishing death would come claim me.

I’m still on vacation (sorry). Comin’ back Thursday, hopefully in time to make it to Old Timer’s for a couple if TT is still happening, though I’m not sure how late I’ll end up rolling into town.

I am still on vacation, though I am working from my parents’ basement for the next couple of days, which means waking up at 7 a.m., though it wasn’t until this minute that I realized I could sleep until 7 instead of 6 due to the time difference. I went shopping for a suit today for the wedding. It was pretty painless but made me feel obese. Later I walked up to Seven Corners to get out of the house and wandered around in Guitar Center and bought my mom a gift certificate to the Vietnamese restaurant she likes for her birthday. I’ve been reading a lot, finished “Carter Beats the Devil” in a couple of days (the perfect vacation book, fascinating but quick) and the Bill Bryson Australia book in a day or so. Other than that, I’ve been sitting in my parents’ basement trying to find anything good to watch on cable. I am ready to come home.

you going to that black lips show on thursday nick?

Looks like it.

I guess I will read more now.

My work is in the pre-real-Jan/Feb-doldrums doldrums. I am bracing for being might broke.

I play the doldrums. I am a doldrummer.

I’ve still got this headache thing that only hurts when I stand up or lie down, like it’s an equilibrium thing. I’m pretty sure it’s either minor cold/flu symptoms (although otherwise I’m not that stuffed up) or a brain tumor.

i get those a lot. it prob means that you’re a bit fluey in a way that has messed with your blood pressure a bit.

i watched a movie that was a very bad movie to watch on christmas day, though a good movie—tsotsi. not a fluffy heartwarming cute thing to watch when sick in bed on a holiday. and jimmy stewart was nowhere to be found on tv. i heard that someone bought the rights to it’s a wonderful life and they barely ever show it now.

So you’re saying it’s not a tumah? Oh good.

Movies I watched over the weekend:

Beastmaster (part of it anyway, in the hotel. I love the Beastmaster handshake)

Little Miss Sunshine (there could have been much worse movies to watch w/dad & stepmom)

The Good Sheperd (slow, long, boring, just like espionage work is? I liked it anyway)

Oleanna (I’m not sure but I think I really liked this)

Sorry I didn’t get on AIM, Laurel. I was on the verge of unconsciousness, watching Youtube in bed. Things are not going to be right for a while I think, considering that I was drinking and eating for 3 days straight.

i watched the blues brothers and the muppet movie (that was a gift from my sister).

jesse, i txted jenny to try to get your # so we could booze it up or whatnot but never heard back from her.

Boo.

That would have been fun. You would have been especially welcome as a reliable 3rd-shift guy.

i don’t know what that means. instead i watched the best of triumph the insult comic dog on dvd which was a present from me to me.

I had Sayjal as 1st shift, then someone else and then I was all alone at the bar. Same situation the next day.

dang, yeah. i could’ve worked a double actually.

The Loop is lively with shoppers, but my building is empty. No L3o Burn3tters, no attorneys staff at W|inston/Str@um, even the Cartridge World and the hair and nail salons are closed. It’s 40-some floors of nothing except for bored waiters.

a cop was shot about an hour ago at artesian and division, that shouldn’t fuck up my trip home too much i’m sure.

What was he doing to get himself shot?

probably acting like a dick or something. or busting criminals or whatever.

I think it is because of what he was wearing. He was asking for it.

later chicago, i’m going home to curl up with my nyquil.

so am i the only idiot who got out of bed today or what? where the hell is everyone?

I’m here. I imagine everyone else is having champagne blowjobs or whatever people on vacation do.

I am working in my parents’ basement. Got the space heater on.

Just got to work. Nick and Sarah: I visited your cats last night. They are well.

I heard a really annoying solo (free jazz) sax piece on the way to work. It was like someone going “heyheyheyheyguesswhatguesswhatguesswhatheyheyguessguesswhat” and then screaming in your ear. I kept listening to it because it wasn’t talk radio.

Maybe it’s too derivative of Oasis, Jordan, but if you would like to start a band with me called Champagne Blowjobs, I will go all the way to Madison to practice.

Madison seems like it’d be a great place to spend New Years Eve.

Haha, I am in.

Madison seems like it’d be a great place to spend New Years Eve.

I hope so, but all of my best New Years have been out of town (Milwaukee, Minneapolis, up north). I have no NYE plans this year, although 3van has invited me to see one Robbie Fulks out at a bar.

I just googled that phrase to see if it was a common phrase and came across this (safe for work) set of photos

—excellent for fans of the “so not gonna happen” school of party photography/anthropology.

xpost—I saw that Robbie Fulks was playing up there. I know his drummer, Gerald d0wd, a bit—really good and nice guy too. And an Irish band called The P1nts who I met last summer when I played in Madison sent out an invitation to a NYE show.

(Irish band with very cute gals, I should say)